Best Part of Waking Up (CH)

Dry Irish Stout with coffee beans made for NCHF 2023.

Brewed 5.0 gallons on 2023-08-19

Preboil gravity: 1.038

Original gravity: 1.041

Final gravity: 1.013

ABV: 3.7%

Apparent Attenuation: 68.3%

Link about this beverage Tilt

Inspired by McLiliDan's Dry Irish Stout (BS)

Process notes

2023-09-04

Kegged. I'm really liking the coffee aroma; it's like a fresh cold brew. Body is quite thin, but that's probably to be expected for a Dry Irish Stout. This should be really easy drinking; I'm curious how it turns out once carbonated.

Boil for 60 minutes

At 60 minutes

1 ounce of 4.8% Alpha Acid British Kent Goldings pellets (Artisan Hops; Batch #57692)

At 60 minutes

1.5 grams of Baking Soda (Added a bit of baking soda to try to raise the pH in the hopes of rounding out the beer a bit.)

At 15 minutes

1 Whirlfloc Tablet

At 0 minutes

1 ounce of 4.8% Alpha Acid British Kent Goldings pellets (Artisan Hops; Batch #57692)

Mash

[75.00%] 7 pounds 8 ounces of Golden Promise (SimpsonsMalt)

[10.00%] 1 pound of Crystal 15L (GreatWesternMalting)

[10.00%] 1 pound of Roasted Barley (VikingMalt)

[5.00%] 8 ounces of Black Malt (VikingMalt)

Single infusion mash. Mashed with 3.75 gallons (1.50 quarts per pound) of reverse osmosis water for 60 minutes. 10lb of grain was used in the mash.

Strike water temp: (0.2/1.50) * (152 - 68) + 152 = 163.2

0.80g calcium chloride, 1.90g gypsum, 1.90g baking soda, and 0.80g chalk added to water

After 0 mins

mash is 152°

After 30 mins

mash is 152°; pH is 5.50

After 60 mins

mash is 149°; pH is 5.42

Sparge

Sparged for 50 minutes with 5 gallons of 170° reverse osmosis water.

1.00g calcium chloride and 2.50g gypsum added to water

After 0 mins

pH is 5.20; specific gravity is 1.072

After 16 mins

pH is 5.27; specific gravity is 1.039

After 30 mins

pH is 5.35; specific gravity is 1.024

After 45 mins

pH is 5.57; specific gravity is 1.010

After 49 mins

pH is 5.48; specific gravity is 1.008

Yeast

2023-08-19

Pitch 1 pack of 1084 Irish Ale (Wyeast) at 67°. (Best By: Oct 11, 2023; Lot #0743101)

Dry additions

2023-09-02

6 ounces of Coffee. (Sanitized/sterilized a bag and a handful of glass marbles with Starsan and by submerging in boiling water. Then added 6oz of whole beans of Tico Coffee Roasters brand, medium roast, La Minita coffee. Description is Chocolate, Orange, Sweet.)

Tasting notes (7.20/10; 5 ratings)

2023-09-06

[8/10] First pour. This has only been kegged a few days, so it still needs more carbonation, but the coffee aroma is still great. The body is super thin (not surprising given the style). This basically tastes like a cold brew. Some creaminess from carbonation should really help with the body, but the aroma and flavor profile are pretty spot on.

2023-11-07

[8/10] The aroma is still great; strong roasted coffee. No green pepper. Medium-light body, dry roast. Lots of flavor for 3.7%. Mild coffee finish.

2024-02-08

[6/10] Still had a decent coffee aroma, but it’s definitely faded. Pretty good aroma considering how old this is. A bit acrid in the flavor. Aroma is better than the flavor. Past its prime, but still not bad.

2024-05-19

[7/10] Brought this to the Sudzers tonight for the second time (primarily to help free up the keezer); I guess I didn't take notes the first time. I was curious if the coffee held up; which I think it did, although the aroma isn't as bold as it once was. Roasty, dry finish. This is holding up surprisingly well.

2024-09-07

[7/10] Final pour. The coffee character has held up really well. Thin, but expected for a Dry Irish Stout. Decent head retention (even though when bottled it apparently didn't hold up well in competition). I'd definitely use this coffee technique again.

Beer competition results

Scored 28 in 2024 Santa Clara County Fair.